October 2010 archive

Get More Out of Jumplists with Jumplist Extender

Calculator (After Jumplist Extender)

Another quick one for tonight. Windows 7 introduced the “jumplist” feature which extends the functionality of the taskbar by allowing quick access to common features, functions and recently used files. However, users have been stuck with what software developers have deemed appropriate for their users whilst users have been unable to make their own modifications. …

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Google Engineer on Windows Phone 7: The World Doesn’t Need Another Mobile Platform

In a PCMag interview, Andy Rubin (a Google Engineer) made a statement in response to Windows Phone 7 in that “the world doesn’t need another mobile platform”. Of course, a statement like that is like rattling a hornets nest for fun and has certainly created some conjecture about the topic in general. What has drawn …

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Stop Windows Update Nagging You to Reboot

I’m sure many other Windows users out there that dread “Patch Tuesday” (which is the second Tuesday of each month when Microsoft release all of their critical patches) and the subsequent reboot required to make the patches take hold. Of course, I make sure to get around to rebooting as soon as I can but …

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Java Applications With Incorrect Timestamps – Check Your Java Timezone Version

Another quick one tonight. At work, I use BusinessObjects Enterprise which runs on top of a Java platform. After daylight savings had clicked over a colleague brought to my attention that object timestamps were now one hours behind what they should be. This turned out to be an issue with the timezone data in the …

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Workarounds for iPhone and Daylight Savings

After seeing some complaints from family and friends about woes with the iPhone and alarms going off an hour early after daylight savings began on the weekend. Until Apple pulls its finger out and releases a fix there are a couple of things you can do in the meantime. Use one off alarms (which sucks …

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Flipboard – A New Way to Browse Your Facebook and Twitter Feeds

Flipboard

Another quick one for tonight (as I have been given the task of attempting to resurrect a laptop after water was spilt on it – I’m not fancying my chances). For those of you with an iPad, there is a great application called Flipboard. Basically, you can provide it with your Facebook login as well …

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Skype Arrives on Android – Finally!

Just a quick one for tonight. For a while, many Android users have been left out in the cold without an official Skype client. Instead, users have had to resort to hacking crippled clients from other Android handsets that were originally bound by various carrier restrictions (such as limited Skype minutes). Well, Skype has literally …

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Facebook to Introduce Higher Quality Photo Uploads

I know I have certainly been frustrated with the image resolution of photos I upload to Facebook despite capturing images at up to eight megapixels (either with a Digital SLR or the camera in my phone). Seeing stunning images on my computer or on my mobile and then seeing a less detailed version online can …

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4K Hard Drives – Prep Them Properly

Western Digital Advanced Format Hard Drive Label

Some of us may have come across the term “4K hard drives” or perhaps “advanced format” hard drives. For many, these terms would simply drown in the sea of other confusing computer terminology that techies have come to love and consumers have come to hate. So, the first question to get out of the way …

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Earphones: Pin Compatible May Not Mean Electrically Compatible

As you may know, I switched to the Samsung Galaxy S a few weeks ago (and it’s still going very well apart from a stumbling block with using The Missing Sync which I am following up with the vendor). As one might expect for a phone of this calibre, a pair of earphones with a …

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